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Turnitin: A staff guide to interpreting the Similarity Report

Introduction.

This guide describes what a similarity report shows and how to interpret matches highlighted on a student’s assignment submitted to Turnitin.

The similarity report is an effective way to:

• Check that online sources in an assignment have been properly cited and the text has not simply been copied without appropriate referencing.
• Help students as a formative learning tool around referencing and that you can use with your students to improve their skills.
• Identify collusion between students on their course and potentially from other institutions who use Turnitin in the UK.
• Ensure a level of equality and parity when checking the similarity of students’ work against the vast range of possible online sources.
• Deter students from plagiarising and encourage good academic practice.

It’s important to know that a simliarity match does not always means plagiarism . You will need to apply your academic judgment by understanding how the report works and what it shows.

The similarity report is best used in conjunction with other methods to prevent and detect plagiarism and as part of a co-ordinated approach to maintaining the academic integrity of students’ written work.

Turnitin guide:  Setting reasonable expectations for the Turnitin Similarity Score

How to interpret the Similarity Report

The similarity index percentage.

An overall percentage score (with colour code) is shown next to a student’s name under the Similarity column in the Assignment Inbox. This shows the total amount of matched text as a proportion of the assignment.

This ‘at a glance’ guide should not be used as a measure of plagiarism. Even a 1% score could potentially be plagiarised.

There is no ideal percentage to look for . Students’ work is bound to contain some words from other sources. The percentage will vary depending on the type and length of assignment and the requirements of the work involved .

Individual matches need to be investigated by opening the student’s paper and viewing the match overview and breakdown panel.

What does the Similarity Index percentage indicate?

A 100% match means the assignment has no original work . It has most probably been submitted previously to Turnitin . This can happen if the student is making a re-submission of their work and the file had already been submitted to the Turnitin database. It could be a student error and they submitted to another assignment area by mistake. It can also indicate collusion or copying an essay from another student, either in their class, from a previous year or another institution.

Types of frequently found ‘acceptable’ matched text.

There are certain types of matched text that Turnitin will find, which can be safely excluded or ignored with discretion. These matches will be included in the overall similarity score for a similarity report and be highlighted as a matches on a student’s paper.

These include:

• Quotations: Properly referenced quotations can be ignored. These can be excluded using the filter.
• References and Bibliography: Other students will have used the same references at some point and these will show up.
• Matching formats: e.g. the same essay title.
• Tables and Charts showing shared or copied data or statistics.
• Appendices may also have a large amount of matching text as other students may well have used the same sources.
• Small matches that form common phrases in a sentence or subject terminology will be detected. These can be removed using the small match filter.
• Paraphrasing text from a source will be highlighted even where words in the phrase have been changed.  If the source has been cited, it remains the academic judgment of the tutor to decide if the text has been suitably paraphrased.

Examples of common match patterns found on assignments.

Page last updated on September 20, 2023 by adambailey

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• Aberystwyth University
• Referencing & Plagiarism Awareness
• 11. How to interpret your Turnitin similarity report

Referencing & Plagiarism Awareness: 11. How to interpret your Turnitin similarity report

• 1. Introduction
• 2. What is referencing and citation?
• 3. How to insert citations into your assignment.
• 4. What is plagiarism?
• 5. Referencing Artificial Intelligence Outputs
• 6. Consequences of plagiarism
• 7. Plagiarism in the news
• 8. Referencing Examples
• 9. Reference management tools
• 10. Submitting your work using Turnitin
• 12. Further help

Interpretation

What is the Similarity Report?

A Similarity Report shows textual matches or similarities between your assignment submitted to Turnitin and a range of online sources including Turnitin’s own bank of previously submitted work. Turnitin's online sources include: web pages, essay mills, online journals, articles and publications. The scan is generated once you have submitted your assignment to Turnitin.

What does the Similarity score indicate?

Most original student assignments will contain some text matches. There is no ideal percentage to aim for as percentages are dependent on the subject and requirements of the assignment. This ‘at a glance’ guide should not be used as a measure of plagiarism as even a 1% score could potentially indicate plagiarism.

• Click on the Funnel style Filter icon on the right-hand panel in Feedback Studio
• Choose whether to exclude Quotes or Bibliography
• Choose whether to exclude matches that are less than either a percentage of the whole text or are less than a specific number of words.
• Click “ Apply Changes ”.

What is the Similarity score?

The Similarity Score is the percentage of text in the assignment submitted to Turnitin that matches or is similar to online sources. A score of 0% indicates that no matches have been found whilst a score of, 100% means that all the text is matching. Note that matching text is likely to include correctly referenced and quoted text as well as text which has not been referenced at all.

Accessing the Similarity Report

The Similarity Report can only be viewed after you have submitted your assignment and if the assignment has been set up by your department to allow you to see the associated Similarity Report.

To view your Similarity Report on an assignment you have submitted (whether it has been marked on not):

• Log in to Blackboard and open My Modules .
• Go to the module you submitted your assignment to.
• Navigate to the Turnitin submission point that you submitted your assignment to.
• Click on the Similarity score or click View to open your assignment with the Similarity score
• Your assignment will open in Feedback Studio
• To view the Match Overview, click on the red, numerical similarity score from the toolbar
• You will now see your Similarity Report.
• Text matching will appear in the body of your assignment.
• Text that is matched from different sources will be highlighted.

Other Report functions

•    The button on the right side gives you information such as submission date, filename etc.
•    The word count and page count can be found at the bottom of the Report.
•    The slider tool at the bottom of the Report allows you to increase or decrease the text size in the document

Is it a plagiarism detector?

Turnitin does not check for plagiarism in a submitted assignment. The software cannot tell whether a submitted assignment has been plagiarised, it can only state how much text has been matched or is similar to external and other sources.

The Similarity Report is useful for checking that online sources in an assignment have been properly cited and referenced as well as for deterring plagiarism and encouraging good academic practice.

To establish whether unfair means have occurred, the Similarity Report must be interpreted by an appropriate member of staff in your department.

Interpreting the Similarity Report

• Locate Match Overview : The right-hand side panel shows matches found from either websites, journals, articles or other student submissions.
• Click the chevron to the right of a particular source. This will open up a pop-up text box which shows the matching text and direct links (where available) to that source. Each match has its own corresponding colour.
• You can also click directly on one of the matches in the student submission itself to bring up the pop-up text box
• Match breakdown: You will now enter the match breakdown. This will show all further sources that contain the same portion of matching text
• Click Full source view  to view a particular match in the sidebar, this also allows you to scroll through the further source matches using the <> arrows.

Further Help

See Turnitin’s Help pages for more information on viewing and interpreting the similarity report. Turnitin also have a useful interactive demo where you can try the Feedback Studio and find out more.

Turnitin FAQ's  

Aberystwyth University. (2019) Better Marks with Good Referencing. Turnitin: interpreting the similarity report. Available at: https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/is/library-services/infoskills/good-referencing/#turnitin:-interpreting-the-similarity-report (Accessed: 22 July 2020).

• << Previous: 10. Submitting your work using Turnitin
• Next: 12. Further help >>
• Diweddarwyd / Last Updated: Aug 7, 2024 1:46 PM
• URL: https://libguides.aber.ac.uk/referencing
• Argraffu / Print page

Hygyrchedd / Accessibility

• Academic integrity
• Plagiarism, collusion and other examples of misconduct
• Artificial intelligence tools and technologies

Advice for students regarding Turnitin and AI writing detection

On 5 April 2023, Turnitin launched a new tool that identifies material that has potentially been written by artificial intelligence (AI) software (eg ChatGPT). The tool is in the early stages of development and is currently only available in staff view – this setting cannot be changed by the University.

How reliable is the tool?

This is an early release of the tool which the University has chosen to deploy so that we can thoroughly test it and actively provide input to Turnitin on its design.

The tool looks for English language patterns it scores as likely generated from an AI source and produces a conservative identification of AI written content. The scores per sentence and across groups of sentences assigned by the tool must collectively reach a high confidence threshold (98%) before they are flagged as likely having been written by AI.

This means that if the tool indicates that 40% of the overall text has been AI-generated, it is 98% confident that is the case. The University, along with others in the sector, are seeking more detail on the sensitivity and specificity of this model and how confidence intervals are calculated as well as conducting our own tests on its reliability. This information will be publicly shared as it becomes available.

What will the University do if the tool reports a high score for submitted work?

As with the similarity report generated by Turnitin, the result of the AI writing detector tool is a prompt for further investigation.

Should there be a suspicion that part or all of your submitted assessment has been produced using generative AI, you may be asked to explain your essay and argument (how you developed the argument, what sources you used, how you reached the conclusion you did), or to provide drafts or notes of early versions of the assessment.

The Turnitin AI writing detector is a new tool and has only been in use at the University since Semester 1, 2023. This may mean that the tool incorrectly identifies some assessments as having been produced by AI when they have not. Should you be asked to discuss or explain components of your assessment task, understand that this, alone, is not an accusation of academic misconduct. The AI writing detector score would not normally be used as the only evidence to raise an allegation of academic misconduct – but it might be one of several indicators.

When is it OK to use AI tools?

The acceptable use of AI will vary across disciplines, subjects, and assessment tasks. Your subject coordinator will provide this information, but it is your responsibility to check the assessment guidelines and relevant policies, and to understand what is expected of you. Resources on academic integrity are available to you through your subject’s LMS site, Academic Skills , and the Library .

If an assessment task does permit the use of AI tools and technologies in the preparation of the submission, this usage must be appropriately acknowledged and cited in accordance with the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326) .

If an assessment task does not permit the use of such tools, or if you use such tools in the preparation of an assessment submission without acknowledgement, this is academic misconduct. In accordance with the Student Academic Integrity Policy (MPF1310) , any student who commits academic misconduct is subject to the penalties outlined in the Schedule of Student Academic Misconduct Penalties .

As other tools to detect the use of AI become available, the University will consider adopting their use. Work submitted for assessment is subject to checking through these tools at any stage. This includes in the years following graduation, and the University has the right to amend marks or rescind degrees should academic misconduct be found at any stage.

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Similarity reports using Turnitin

Turnitin assessment submissions produce a similarity report which includes a similarity index. These are usually visible to you and your lecturer.

• A  similarity report highlights the text in a document which matches sources elsewhere on the Internet such as websites and online journals, as well as other assessments submitted to Turnitin.
• The similarity index within the report tells you how much of your submitted work has been identified by Turnitin as matching other sources. It is shown as a percentage from 0% to 100%.

You should use the similarity report to review your work and identify any accidental occurrences of plagiarism that you may have made.

Viewing and interpreting similarity reports

Accessing my similarity report.

The similarity report is accessed from the assessment inbox. Click the View button and the report will open as a new window.

Your assessment will be shown on the left hand side and should look exactly like the work you submitted, although sometimes minor variations in formatting can occur. 

The layers icon allows you to toggle the grading and similarity views on and off. Make sure the similarity view is on. 

Checking my similarity index

The starting point for the similarity report is to view your similarity index. You can see this in the Assessment inbox.

The percentage tells you how much of your submitted work has been identified by Turnitin as matching other sources.  The index is colour coded as follows:

• Blue icon - No matching text
• Green icon - one word to 24% matching text
• Yellow icon - 25% to 49% matching text
• Orange icon - 50% to 74% matching text
• Red icon - 75% to 100% matching text

Don’t be alarmed if your similarity index is higher than you might expect. A high similarity index doesn’t necessarily mean that you have plagiarised. Turnitin highlights matching text, not plagiarised text.

Understanding matching text vs plagiarised text

Turnitin matches are usually one of three things:

• A match which is properly quoted and referenced - not plagiarism
• A match which is not properly quoted and referenced – possible plagiarism
• Common terminology of the discipline – not usually plagiarism

Whatever your similarity index, you should then review your work in more detail by viewing the similarity report.

Viewing similarity match information that has been identified

The red block of icons allow you to view the similarity match information for your paper and to see a breakdown of the different sources that have been identified.

Your match overview

Within your assessment you may see selected blocks of text, each with their own number and colour.

On the right hand side you will see the individual matches listed in detail, starting with the match with the highest percentage and working down to the smallest matches.

Review all of the matches to check why they have been highlighted. Start with the text contributing to your largest match (number 1 in the list) and work your way down.

Things to look for:

• If a highlighted block is a quotation, check that you have used quotation marks, and included the reference at the end of the quotation.
• Matches you can ignore: common expressions in your discipline; your reference list or bibliography.

Where can I get more information?

Find out more about interpreting similarity reports on the Turnitin website . 

This guidance is based on Interpreting Your Originality Report produced by the E-Learning Unit at Queen Mary University of London and is available under a creative commons BY-NC-SA licence. Under the terms of that licence the material here is also available for re-use.

Turnitin Originality

Turnitin Originality is Purdue’s centrally supported originality checker and plagiarism detection tool for files submitted through Brightspace assignments. The tool works by comparing the text in file submissions to Turnitin’s database of previously submitted papers, published research papers, and numerous internet resources. A “similarity report” is then produced highlighting areas of the paper that match content in Turnitin’s database. Originality also includes E-rater grammar feedback technology that can check submissions for grammar, mechanics, style, and spelling errors. 

Turnitin Originality is free to both instructors and students. The tool is only available within Brightspace and only for assignments where the instructor has enabled it. Files previously submitted to SafeAssign through Blackboard have been migrated to the Turnitin database. 

Getting Started

Instructors

• How to Enable Turnitin for a Brightspace assignment  
• How to interpret the Similarity Report  
• Supported File Types  
• How do I interpret the Similarity Report?  
• Turnitin Roadmap    
• Why has the Similarity Report not generated?   

Support Information

Contact  

• Purdue Information Technology  
• Weblink: https://it.purdue.edu/help/index.php   
• Email: [email protected]  
• Phone: 765-494-4000 (44000 when dialing from a campus phone) 

Funding  

• West Lafayette Central Campus 
• New Brightspace Tool Integration  
• Support & Training
• Request a New Tool

Request a Consultation

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May 9, 2023, by Helen Whitehead

Turnitin: what does the % similarity score really mean?

At the University of Nottingham, as elsewhere, student assignment papers are submitted to the Turnitin service. This produces a Similarity score and report but it doesn’t indicate plagiarism or a lack of academic integrity. What Turnitin does is check a student’s work against a database of previous submissions, web pages and journals. If there are instances where a student’s writing is similar to, or matches against, one of the sources in the database, this will be flagged and a percentage score given to quantify the proportion of the submission that matches text in the database.

The ideal is definitely not a 0% match. It is perfectly normal for an assignment to match against some of Turnitin’s database. Even if a student has used quotes and has referenced correctly, there will be instances where a match will be found. The scores are just a measure of the amount of text that is matched. It does not directly judge the student’s work practices. It’s always up to academics and midconduct officers to use the similarity score and report as one tool to make an informed judgement.

What’s an acceptable percentage score? This will depend on the type of assignment and the subject area. For example, a lab report on an experiment that every first year student does is likely to have a lot of the same vocabulary and phrasing. A creative writing piece, on the other hand, should have a very low similarity score.

The kinds of text that may be included in the score can include:

• Matched text that is cited and referenced correctly.
• References listed at the end of the essay.
• Common phrases over a certain length (which are especially likely to be matched in lab and practical reports).
• Any text that the student may have copied from a website.

A large score may indicate over-reliance on direct quotations that are properly cited, good adherence to scientific reporting conventions, or even plagiarism/collusion.

Aiming for a 0% or low score will never be the way to use Turnitin Similarity scores and reports. Using them as a tool, with awareness of how Turnitin works, will inform academic integrity discussions. They can also help students to understand academic writing and how to use quotes effectively.

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5 free plagiarism checkers for university students

Free plagiarism checkers are nifty tools for university students in the digital age. Why? Simply because passing off someone else’s work as your own is a serious offence in the academic community.

This is why students are encouraged to always attribute quotes, paraphrase borrowed ideas, and steer clear from copying entire sentences or paragraphs. Equally important is corroborating sources by cross-checking facts on reliable websites. Finally, running your work through a free plagiarism checker will determine if it is an original piece worthy of a good grade.

No better feeling than when the plagiarism result comes back like this 😌 pic.twitter.com/khx6cdV4zQ — sign & wonder 💡 (@mikeOI3) August 15, 2021

Why use a free plagiarism checker?

The rising prominence of technology in higher education has its pitfalls — one of them being plagiarism. In response, universities are forced to crack down on students who submit “stolen” work. Students caught plagiarising face real consequences including a failed grade or academic probation. It’s no wonder, then, that institutions like Oxford University have even introduced special courses to curb this academic crime.

Such courses teach students what plagiarism is, how to accurately cite other work in their essays, academic writing skills, and even paraphrasing. Yet sometimes, even if you don’t mean to copy, the final text ends up too similar to your references. That’s when a free plagiarism checker comes in handy.

Turnitin may be the popular plagiarism prevention software, but there are other free services that can help you check your work before submission. Here’s a look at five free plagiarism checkers for university students. Use them on all your assignments to maintain peace of mind — and good grades, of course.

Plagiarism checkers help students and teachers maintain a high standard of quality in university classes. Source: Ina Fassbender/AFP

It is typically used for English learning and writing, but did you know Grammarly also has a plagiarism checker? Simply copy a passage or upload a file to check your work against ProQuest databases and 16 billion web pages. You will also gain useful insights on punctuation, vocabulary, and sentence structure to improve your work.

Tap into this free plagiarism checker’s DeepSearch technology for contextual analysis on any subject matter. Quetext promises fast, accurate scanning while protecting the privacy of its users. Feedback includes colour-grading text based on the level of plagiarism and a comprehensive plagiarism score.

If you’re familiar with Turnitin, you can place your confidence in EasyBib — which claims to use similar technology. Beyond checking for plagiarism, this software will also provide suggestions to improve your grammar and style. Bonus: You may submit your paper for a 24-hour in-depth check, which involves detailed feedback from writing experts.

Unicheck compares your work against over 91 billion web sources and open access databases, so you can be sure it catches everything. Students will find the full-scale interactive report helpful; you can check similar sources and adjust citations and references. With its in-depth explanations and promise of 99% uptime, it’s no wonder this software is used by students and teachers alike. Even universities use it to check assessments.

Duplichecker

Another plagiarism checker that uses DeepSearch technology is Duplichecker, which offers a basic free version and a multifunctional pro version. Your results will show percentages of plagiarism, unique, and related-meaning sentences. To begin, copy texts of under 1,000 words or upload your document.

Scribber’s checker, developed in partnership with Turnitin, performs particularly well with sources that are relevant to students, such as journal articles and dissertations. It thrives in detecting plagiarism in heavily edited texts.

How do we detect plagiarism with the rise of ChatGPT?

ChatGPT and plagiarism — these two words are coming together more often recently.

The chatbot powered by artificial intelligence (AI) sounded alarm bells in education circles when it threatened to upend the authenticity of student essays.

While a plagiarism checker might not definitively determine whether a language model was used to generate a piece of text, it can help you identify instances of copying or paraphrasing from other sources.

In this, it can still be hard to detect plagiarism by an AI chatbot.

That’s because AI writing tools use natural language and grammar to craft “unique and almost individualised content,” even if the content is drawn from a database, according to Aaron Leong from  Digital Trends .

Still, it didn’t stop Turnitin, a popular free plagiarism checker used by educators and students worldwide from releasing new features to detect the use of AI writing tools.

According to the provider, these  features  can be found in Turnitin Feedback Studio (TFS), TFS with Originality, Turnitin Originality, Turnitin Similarity, Simcheck, Originality Check, and Originality Check+.

Currently, the new features on this platform have reportedly been able to detect the presence of AI writing with  98% confidence  and a less than one percent false-positive rate in Turnitin’s controlled lab environment.

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* Only available when uploading an English .docx (Word) document

Rely on the most accurate plagiarism checker of 2023

Scribbr’s plagiarism checker, in partnership with Turnitin, detects plagiarism more accurately than other popular tools — particularly when texts are edited. This makes it the go-to plagiarism checker for students in the UK.

See test results

Find out if your writing contains potential plagiarism

The free plagiarism checker, in partnership with Turnitin, will give you a heads-up if your writing is similar to the content in our database.

View your top 5 matching sources

The Sources Overview shows you the top five sources that match your writing. You can see the domain, database, and the number of matching words for each source. It’s important to cite these sources!

Identify spelling and grammar issues in your document

In addition to checking for plagiarism, powerful AI software scans your English text for spelling and grammar issues. The free check gives an overview of the issues per category.

Submit your paper with confidence, knowing it’s free of plagiarism

Make your writing plagiarism-free with the premium plagiarism checker.

Get a precise similarity percentage

The premium plagiarism checker provides you with an accurate similarity score that tells you what percentage of your paper is not original.

Review highlighted text snippets for missing citations

Similarities in your document are highlighted for quick and easy reviewing. Each color corresponds to a source in the Sources Overview.

Compare your writing to the original text side by side

Use the comparison feature to see how similar your writing is to the original without leaving the plagiarism checker report.

Check for self-plagiarism by uploading previous assignments

Upload previous assignments or a classmate’s paper to catch (self-)plagiarism that is otherwise difficult to detect by regular plagiarism checkers.

Review your spelling and grammar corrections in Word

Writing issues are corrected automatically when you upload a Word document. To review the corrections, you can download a Word document with Track Changes.

Price per document

Prices are per check, not a subscription

Volume pricing available for institutions. Get in touch.

Request volume pricing

Institutions interested in buying more than 50 plagiarism checks can request a discounted price. Please fill in the form below.

Name * Email * Institution Name * Institution’s website * Country * Phone number Give an indication of how many checks you need * Please indicate how you want to use the checks * Depending of the size of your request, you will be contacted by a representative of either Scribbr or Turnitin. * Required

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Submissions will never be added to our content database. Therefore, no other plagiarism checker will see your text.

Scribbr's plagiarism checker is perfect for you if you:

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Detect plagiarism using software similar to what most universities use.

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You don't need a plagiarism checker, right?

You would never copy-and-paste someone else’s work, you’re great at paraphrasing, and you always keep a tidy list of your sources handy.

But what about accidental plagiarism ? It’s more common than you think! Maybe you paraphrased a little too closely, or forgot that last citation or set of quotation marks.

Even if you did it by accident, plagiarism is still a serious offense. You may fail your course, or be placed on academic probation. The risks just aren’t worth it.

Scribbr & academic integrity

Scribbr is committed to protecting academic integrity. Our plagiarism checker, AI Detector , APA Reference Generator, proofreading services , and free Knowledge Base content are designed to help educate and guide students in avoiding unintentional plagiarism.

We make every effort to prevent our software from being used for fraudulent or manipulative purposes.

Ask our team

Want to contact us directly? No problem. We are always here for you.

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Frequently asked questions

Extensive testing proves that Scribbr’s plagiarism checker is one of the most accurate plagiarism checkers on the market in 2022.

The software detects everything from exact word matches to synonym swapping. It also has access to a full range of source types, including open- and restricted-access journal articles, theses and dissertations, websites, PDFs, and news articles.

Scribbr’s  Plagiarism Checker is powered by elements of Turnitin’s Similarity Checker , namely the plagiarism detection software and the Internet Archive and Premium Scholarly Publications content databases .

The add-on AI detector is powered by Scribbr’s proprietary software.

Your document will be compared to the world’s largest and fastest-growing content database , containing over:

• 99.3 billion current and historical webpages
• 8 million publications from more than 1,700 publishers such as Springer, IEEE , Elsevier, Wiley-Blackwell, and Taylor & Francis

Note: Scribbr does not have access to Turnitin’s global database with student papers. Only your university can add and compare submissions to this database.

At the moment we do not offer a monthly subscription for the Scribbr Plagiarism Checker. Plagiarism checks can be bought separately — prices depend on the size of your document.

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The free report tells you if your text contains potential plagiarism and other writing issues. The premium report gives you the resources you need to review issues in detail and resolve them.

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Comparing and Contrasting

What this handout is about.

This handout will help you first to determine whether a particular assignment is asking for comparison/contrast and then to generate a list of similarities and differences, decide which similarities and differences to focus on, and organize your paper so that it will be clear and effective. It will also explain how you can (and why you should) develop a thesis that goes beyond “Thing A and Thing B are similar in many ways but different in others.”

Introduction

In your career as a student, you’ll encounter many different kinds of writing assignments, each with its own requirements. One of the most common is the comparison/contrast essay, in which you focus on the ways in which certain things or ideas—usually two of them—are similar to (this is the comparison) and/or different from (this is the contrast) one another. By assigning such essays, your instructors are encouraging you to make connections between texts or ideas, engage in critical thinking, and go beyond mere description or summary to generate interesting analysis: when you reflect on similarities and differences, you gain a deeper understanding of the items you are comparing, their relationship to each other, and what is most important about them.

Recognizing comparison/contrast in assignments

Some assignments use words—like compare, contrast, similarities, and differences—that make it easy for you to see that they are asking you to compare and/or contrast. Here are a few hypothetical examples:

• Compare and contrast Frye’s and Bartky’s accounts of oppression.
• Compare WWI to WWII, identifying similarities in the causes, development, and outcomes of the wars.
• Contrast Wordsworth and Coleridge; what are the major differences in their poetry?

Notice that some topics ask only for comparison, others only for contrast, and others for both.

But it’s not always so easy to tell whether an assignment is asking you to include comparison/contrast. And in some cases, comparison/contrast is only part of the essay—you begin by comparing and/or contrasting two or more things and then use what you’ve learned to construct an argument or evaluation. Consider these examples, noticing the language that is used to ask for the comparison/contrast and whether the comparison/contrast is only one part of a larger assignment:

• Choose a particular idea or theme, such as romantic love, death, or nature, and consider how it is treated in two Romantic poems.
• How do the different authors we have studied so far define and describe oppression?
• Compare Frye’s and Bartky’s accounts of oppression. What does each imply about women’s collusion in their own oppression? Which is more accurate?
• In the texts we’ve studied, soldiers who served in different wars offer differing accounts of their experiences and feelings both during and after the fighting. What commonalities are there in these accounts? What factors do you think are responsible for their differences?

You may want to check out our handout on understanding assignments for additional tips.

Using comparison/contrast for all kinds of writing projects

Sometimes you may want to use comparison/contrast techniques in your own pre-writing work to get ideas that you can later use for an argument, even if comparison/contrast isn’t an official requirement for the paper you’re writing. For example, if you wanted to argue that Frye’s account of oppression is better than both de Beauvoir’s and Bartky’s, comparing and contrasting the main arguments of those three authors might help you construct your evaluation—even though the topic may not have asked for comparison/contrast and the lists of similarities and differences you generate may not appear anywhere in the final draft of your paper.

Discovering similarities and differences

Making a Venn diagram or a chart can help you quickly and efficiently compare and contrast two or more things or ideas. To make a Venn diagram, simply draw some overlapping circles, one circle for each item you’re considering. In the central area where they overlap, list the traits the two items have in common. Assign each one of the areas that doesn’t overlap; in those areas, you can list the traits that make the things different. Here’s a very simple example, using two pizza places:

To make a chart, figure out what criteria you want to focus on in comparing the items. Along the left side of the page, list each of the criteria. Across the top, list the names of the items. You should then have a box per item for each criterion; you can fill the boxes in and then survey what you’ve discovered.

Here’s an example, this time using three pizza places:

As you generate points of comparison, consider the purpose and content of the assignment and the focus of the class. What do you think the professor wants you to learn by doing this comparison/contrast? How does it fit with what you have been studying so far and with the other assignments in the course? Are there any clues about what to focus on in the assignment itself?

Here are some general questions about different types of things you might have to compare. These are by no means complete or definitive lists; they’re just here to give you some ideas—you can generate your own questions for these and other types of comparison. You may want to begin by using the questions reporters traditionally ask: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? If you’re talking about objects, you might also consider general properties like size, shape, color, sound, weight, taste, texture, smell, number, duration, and location.

Two historical periods or events

• When did they occur—do you know the date(s) and duration? What happened or changed during each? Why are they significant?
• What kinds of work did people do? What kinds of relationships did they have? What did they value?
• What kinds of governments were there? Who were important people involved?
• What caused events in these periods, and what consequences did they have later on?

Two ideas or theories

• What are they about?
• Did they originate at some particular time?
• Who created them? Who uses or defends them?
• What is the central focus, claim, or goal of each? What conclusions do they offer?
• How are they applied to situations/people/things/etc.?
• Which seems more plausible to you, and why? How broad is their scope?
• What kind of evidence is usually offered for them?

Two pieces of writing or art

• What are their titles? What do they describe or depict?
• What is their tone or mood? What is their form?
• Who created them? When were they created? Why do you think they were created as they were? What themes do they address?
• Do you think one is of higher quality or greater merit than the other(s)—and if so, why?
• For writing: what plot, characterization, setting, theme, tone, and type of narration are used?
• Where are they from? How old are they? What is the gender, race, class, etc. of each?
• What, if anything, are they known for? Do they have any relationship to each other?
• What are they like? What did/do they do? What do they believe? Why are they interesting?
• What stands out most about each of them?

Deciding what to focus on

By now you have probably generated a huge list of similarities and differences—congratulations! Next you must decide which of them are interesting, important, and relevant enough to be included in your paper. Ask yourself these questions:

• What’s relevant to the assignment?
• What’s relevant to the course?
• What’s interesting and informative?
• What matters to the argument you are going to make?
• What’s basic or central (and needs to be mentioned even if obvious)?
• Overall, what’s more important—the similarities or the differences?

Suppose that you are writing a paper comparing two novels. For most literature classes, the fact that they both use Caslon type (a kind of typeface, like the fonts you may use in your writing) is not going to be relevant, nor is the fact that one of them has a few illustrations and the other has none; literature classes are more likely to focus on subjects like characterization, plot, setting, the writer’s style and intentions, language, central themes, and so forth. However, if you were writing a paper for a class on typesetting or on how illustrations are used to enhance novels, the typeface and presence or absence of illustrations might be absolutely critical to include in your final paper.

Sometimes a particular point of comparison or contrast might be relevant but not terribly revealing or interesting. For example, if you are writing a paper about Wordsworth’s “Tintern Abbey” and Coleridge’s “Frost at Midnight,” pointing out that they both have nature as a central theme is relevant (comparisons of poetry often talk about themes) but not terribly interesting; your class has probably already had many discussions about the Romantic poets’ fondness for nature. Talking about the different ways nature is depicted or the different aspects of nature that are emphasized might be more interesting and show a more sophisticated understanding of the poems.

Your thesis

The thesis of your comparison/contrast paper is very important: it can help you create a focused argument and give your reader a road map so they don’t get lost in the sea of points you are about to make. As in any paper, you will want to replace vague reports of your general topic (for example, “This paper will compare and contrast two pizza places,” or “Pepper’s and Amante are similar in some ways and different in others,” or “Pepper’s and Amante are similar in many ways, but they have one major difference”) with something more detailed and specific. For example, you might say, “Pepper’s and Amante have similar prices and ingredients, but their atmospheres and willingness to deliver set them apart.”

Be careful, though—although this thesis is fairly specific and does propose a simple argument (that atmosphere and delivery make the two pizza places different), your instructor will often be looking for a bit more analysis. In this case, the obvious question is “So what? Why should anyone care that Pepper’s and Amante are different in this way?” One might also wonder why the writer chose those two particular pizza places to compare—why not Papa John’s, Dominos, or Pizza Hut? Again, thinking about the context the class provides may help you answer such questions and make a stronger argument. Here’s a revision of the thesis mentioned earlier:

Pepper’s and Amante both offer a greater variety of ingredients than other Chapel Hill/Carrboro pizza places (and than any of the national chains), but the funky, lively atmosphere at Pepper’s makes it a better place to give visiting friends and family a taste of local culture.

You may find our handout on constructing thesis statements useful at this stage.

Organizing your paper

There are many different ways to organize a comparison/contrast essay. Here are two:

Subject-by-subject

Begin by saying everything you have to say about the first subject you are discussing, then move on and make all the points you want to make about the second subject (and after that, the third, and so on, if you’re comparing/contrasting more than two things). If the paper is short, you might be able to fit all of your points about each item into a single paragraph, but it’s more likely that you’d have several paragraphs per item. Using our pizza place comparison/contrast as an example, after the introduction, you might have a paragraph about the ingredients available at Pepper’s, a paragraph about its location, and a paragraph about its ambience. Then you’d have three similar paragraphs about Amante, followed by your conclusion.

The danger of this subject-by-subject organization is that your paper will simply be a list of points: a certain number of points (in my example, three) about one subject, then a certain number of points about another. This is usually not what college instructors are looking for in a paper—generally they want you to compare or contrast two or more things very directly, rather than just listing the traits the things have and leaving it up to the reader to reflect on how those traits are similar or different and why those similarities or differences matter. Thus, if you use the subject-by-subject form, you will probably want to have a very strong, analytical thesis and at least one body paragraph that ties all of your different points together.

A subject-by-subject structure can be a logical choice if you are writing what is sometimes called a “lens” comparison, in which you use one subject or item (which isn’t really your main topic) to better understand another item (which is). For example, you might be asked to compare a poem you’ve already covered thoroughly in class with one you are reading on your own. It might make sense to give a brief summary of your main ideas about the first poem (this would be your first subject, the “lens”), and then spend most of your paper discussing how those points are similar to or different from your ideas about the second.

Point-by-point

Rather than addressing things one subject at a time, you may wish to talk about one point of comparison at a time. There are two main ways this might play out, depending on how much you have to say about each of the things you are comparing. If you have just a little, you might, in a single paragraph, discuss how a certain point of comparison/contrast relates to all the items you are discussing. For example, I might describe, in one paragraph, what the prices are like at both Pepper’s and Amante; in the next paragraph, I might compare the ingredients available; in a third, I might contrast the atmospheres of the two restaurants.

If I had a bit more to say about the items I was comparing/contrasting, I might devote a whole paragraph to how each point relates to each item. For example, I might have a whole paragraph about the clientele at Pepper’s, followed by a whole paragraph about the clientele at Amante; then I would move on and do two more paragraphs discussing my next point of comparison/contrast—like the ingredients available at each restaurant.

There are no hard and fast rules about organizing a comparison/contrast paper, of course. Just be sure that your reader can easily tell what’s going on! Be aware, too, of the placement of your different points. If you are writing a comparison/contrast in service of an argument, keep in mind that the last point you make is the one you are leaving your reader with. For example, if I am trying to argue that Amante is better than Pepper’s, I should end with a contrast that leaves Amante sounding good, rather than with a point of comparison that I have to admit makes Pepper’s look better. If you’ve decided that the differences between the items you’re comparing/contrasting are most important, you’ll want to end with the differences—and vice versa, if the similarities seem most important to you.

Our handout on organization can help you write good topic sentences and transitions and make sure that you have a good overall structure in place for your paper.

Cue words and other tips

To help your reader keep track of where you are in the comparison/contrast, you’ll want to be sure that your transitions and topic sentences are especially strong. Your thesis should already have given the reader an idea of the points you’ll be making and the organization you’ll be using, but you can help them out with some extra cues. The following words may be helpful to you in signaling your intentions:

• like, similar to, also, unlike, similarly, in the same way, likewise, again, compared to, in contrast, in like manner, contrasted with, on the contrary, however, although, yet, even though, still, but, nevertheless, conversely, at the same time, regardless, despite, while, on the one hand … on the other hand.

For example, you might have a topic sentence like one of these:

• Compared to Pepper’s, Amante is quiet.
• Like Amante, Pepper’s offers fresh garlic as a topping.
• Despite their different locations (downtown Chapel Hill and downtown Carrboro), Pepper’s and Amante are both fairly easy to get to.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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• Comparing and contrasting in an essay | Tips & examples

Comparing and Contrasting in an Essay | Tips & Examples

Published on August 6, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

Comparing and contrasting is an important skill in academic writing . It involves taking two or more subjects and analyzing the differences and similarities between them.

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Table of contents

When should i compare and contrast, making effective comparisons, comparing and contrasting as a brainstorming tool, structuring your comparisons, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about comparing and contrasting.

Many assignments will invite you to make comparisons quite explicitly, as in these prompts.

• Compare the treatment of the theme of beauty in the poetry of William Wordsworth and John Keats.
• Compare and contrast in-class and distance learning. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?

Some other prompts may not directly ask you to compare and contrast, but present you with a topic where comparing and contrasting could be a good approach.

One way to approach this essay might be to contrast the situation before the Great Depression with the situation during it, to highlight how large a difference it made.

Comparing and contrasting is also used in all kinds of academic contexts where it’s not explicitly prompted. For example, a literature review involves comparing and contrasting different studies on your topic, and an argumentative essay may involve weighing up the pros and cons of different arguments.

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As the name suggests, comparing and contrasting is about identifying both similarities and differences. You might focus on contrasting quite different subjects or comparing subjects with a lot in common—but there must be some grounds for comparison in the first place.

For example, you might contrast French society before and after the French Revolution; you’d likely find many differences, but there would be a valid basis for comparison. However, if you contrasted pre-revolutionary France with Han-dynasty China, your reader might wonder why you chose to compare these two societies.

This is why it’s important to clarify the point of your comparisons by writing a focused thesis statement . Every element of an essay should serve your central argument in some way. Consider what you’re trying to accomplish with any comparisons you make, and be sure to make this clear to the reader.

Comparing and contrasting can be a useful tool to help organize your thoughts before you begin writing any type of academic text. You might use it to compare different theories and approaches you’ve encountered in your preliminary research, for example.

Let’s say your research involves the competing psychological approaches of behaviorism and cognitive psychology. You might make a table to summarize the key differences between them.

Or say you’re writing about the major global conflicts of the twentieth century. You might visualize the key similarities and differences in a Venn diagram.

These visualizations wouldn’t make it into your actual writing, so they don’t have to be very formal in terms of phrasing or presentation. The point of comparing and contrasting at this stage is to help you organize and shape your ideas to aid you in structuring your arguments.

When comparing and contrasting in an essay, there are two main ways to structure your comparisons: the alternating method and the block method.

The alternating method

In the alternating method, you structure your text according to what aspect you’re comparing. You cover both your subjects side by side in terms of a specific point of comparison. Your text is structured like this:

Mouse over the example paragraph below to see how this approach works.

One challenge teachers face is identifying and assisting students who are struggling without disrupting the rest of the class. In a traditional classroom environment, the teacher can easily identify when a student is struggling based on their demeanor in class or simply by regularly checking on students during exercises. They can then offer assistance quietly during the exercise or discuss it further after class. Meanwhile, in a Zoom-based class, the lack of physical presence makes it more difficult to pay attention to individual students’ responses and notice frustrations, and there is less flexibility to speak with students privately to offer assistance. In this case, therefore, the traditional classroom environment holds the advantage, although it appears likely that aiding students in a virtual classroom environment will become easier as the technology, and teachers’ familiarity with it, improves.

The block method

In the block method, you cover each of the overall subjects you’re comparing in a block. You say everything you have to say about your first subject, then discuss your second subject, making comparisons and contrasts back to the things you’ve already said about the first. Your text is structured like this:

• Point of comparison A
• Point of comparison B

The most commonly cited advantage of distance learning is the flexibility and accessibility it offers. Rather than being required to travel to a specific location every week (and to live near enough to feasibly do so), students can participate from anywhere with an internet connection. This allows not only for a wider geographical spread of students but for the possibility of studying while travelling. However, distance learning presents its own accessibility challenges; not all students have a stable internet connection and a computer or other device with which to participate in online classes, and less technologically literate students and teachers may struggle with the technical aspects of class participation. Furthermore, discomfort and distractions can hinder an individual student’s ability to engage with the class from home, creating divergent learning experiences for different students. Distance learning, then, seems to improve accessibility in some ways while representing a step backwards in others.

Note that these two methods can be combined; these two example paragraphs could both be part of the same essay, but it’s wise to use an essay outline to plan out which approach you’re taking in each paragraph.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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Some essay prompts include the keywords “compare” and/or “contrast.” In these cases, an essay structured around comparing and contrasting is the appropriate response.

Comparing and contrasting is also a useful approach in all kinds of academic writing : You might compare different studies in a literature review , weigh up different arguments in an argumentative essay , or consider different theoretical approaches in a theoretical framework .

Your subjects might be very different or quite similar, but it’s important that there be meaningful grounds for comparison . You can probably describe many differences between a cat and a bicycle, but there isn’t really any connection between them to justify the comparison.

You’ll have to write a thesis statement explaining the central point you want to make in your essay , so be sure to know in advance what connects your subjects and makes them worth comparing.

Comparisons in essays are generally structured in one of two ways:

• The alternating method, where you compare your subjects side by side according to one specific aspect at a time.
• The block method, where you cover each subject separately in its entirety.

It’s also possible to combine both methods, for example by writing a full paragraph on each of your topics and then a final paragraph contrasting the two according to a specific metric.

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One size does not fit all: Interpreting Turnitin's AI writing score

Learn more about AI-generated text and how Turnitin is partnering with educators to face the threats, responsibilities, and promise of this moment

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Six ways to approach AI proactively and create writing assignments that incorporate this rapidly evolving technology.

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As a former educator, I recall those times when–much like my secondary English Language Arts students–I wanted a simple right or wrong answer to questions. Sadly, these types of responses are rare in spite of their comforting nature. Generative AI writing tools and usage of Turnitin’s AI writing indicator have one thing in common: there is no one “right” approach. An “appropriate” approach may be a more accurate term as determining generative AI parameters may vary greatly from one assignment to another, or from one student to another. Determining the significance of the AI writing score for and with your students is a key step in helping students navigate the world of generative AI writing tools.

The unknown is always frightening and overwhelming. Let's start with what IS known and use that as a framework for understanding the new.

How does the AI writing indicator compare to the Similarity Score?

Linking new ideas to existing knowledge is a strong strategy, so let’s begin with the Turnitin Similarity Score, already familiar to many educators. While there are some significant differences between the two scores, the need for nuance and context is a common element. Veteran Turnitin users know that setting an arbitrary percentage for the Similarity Score without considering the assignment or student lessens the likelihood that this information will be used to inform a meaningful conversation about the student’s writing.

Perhaps the most significant difference between these two percentages is how they are determined. While Turnitin’s Similarity Score is an exact match to a large body of content for similarity checking , the AI writing score indicates the percentage of text in a document that was likely generated by an AI tool ( See #9 of AI detection results and interpretation ). This difference makes some uncomfortable because the AI writing score is a seeming gray area, but shifting that perspective is necessary to harness the power of this information.

The fact that an exact match isn’t identified does not make the information less valuable. In fact, it makes little difference when used as intended: as a single data point that informs the educator’s understanding of the student’s thinking and work. The educator’s own knowledge of the student and their work is as crucial to understanding the AI writing score as the percentage itself. In and of itself, the score cannot stand alone;it is arbitrary and less meaningful without an educator’s sense of the assignment, the student, and overall context.

We at Turnitin encourage educators to take a similar approach to the AI writing score as we recommend for interpreting the Similarity Score. Ideally, this is step one of a conversation that takes place in the formative space , rather than being used as a summative or punitive measure. When the “score”--Similarity or AI writing–is looked upon as the starting point for a dialogue rather than a definitive statement about a student’s work, then these conversations take on vigorous purpose as an opportunity for learning.

To that end, our team of veteran educators developed a helpful resource to support educators and academic decision makers who are looking to understand the similarities and differences between Turnitin's Similarity Score and Turnitin's AI writing indicator. Below, you'll find a downloadable infographic that spells out how each tool can and should be used to responsibly support original student work.

The case for not setting a single AI writing score for a course

While some might argue that a “one score fits all” approach is fair, a closer look at assignment and student dynamics makes this patently untrue. In the interests of fairness and equity, educators should consider multiple factors when reviewing student writing:

• Genre of the assignment . When reviewing a creative or personal narrative, a lower AI writing score would be more expected as original thinking that is personal to the student is expected. When reviewing a research-based piece of writing, a lower AI writing score might indicate a lack of cited evidence to back up the student’s claims, whereas a higher score might indicate a more appropriate level of evidence to back up the student’s claims, or it may reveal some intended or unintended misconduct. A conversation with the student during a review of the work can help the educator determine what happened, why, and what next steps might be.
• Length of an assignment . When reviewing a briefer essay versus a longer research paper, the issue of false positives may need to be considered. Submissions with fewer than 300 words have a greater likelihood of presenting a false positive. But again, while guidelines may be appropriate when considering the impact of the AI writing score, the AI writing indicator isn’t what determines that impact. Only the educator who is familiar with both the assignment parameters and the student can determine how weighty an impact that could and should be.
• Guidelines for usage of AI writing tools . Some assignments may specify that the use of generative AI writing tools is unsanctioned or that they can only be used in certain ways, and these are important factors to consider as well when speaking to students about their work.
• Student needs . While the above mentioned variables would remain similar for an assignment, the greatest variable that must be factored into this decision-making is the student. Not penalizing students with exceptionalities for using tools that are documented to address their particular circumstances is paramount. A student who is an English language learner might be permitted to use a translation tool powered by AI that flags some or all of the submitted work as AI-generated. Not considering that this might unfairly penalize the student while also potentially violating the terms of their allowable accommodations.

While this is not an exhaustive list of exceptionalities or other factors that might impact an educator’s judgment about a student’s AI writing score, the educator’s knowledge of the student and the application of that knowledge is essential to making a fair and reasonable determination. As always, when there is any doubt as to whether academic misconduct has occurred, erring on the side of caution is best.

What factors influence whether the AI writing score merits a conversation?

As with any tool, the success of Turnitin’s AI writing indicator largely depends on how it’s used. When educators look at the AI writing score and utilize it as a single data point rather than a definitive response, then it is being used as intended. No tool can replace the educator’s judgment combined with other data points to determine whether such a conversation is needed.

As education leaders approach these important decisions with vigilance and care, it's important to consider different reasons scores may vary and how they might be addressed. Let's discuss a possible way to demonstrate the thinking and decision-making process in the next section.

Why is an AI writing score of __ ok for Student A, but not appropriate for Student B or Student C?

Because educators know their students, their work, and any special circumstances or needs, this knowledge supersedes an arbitrary score except as a possible starting point.

Assume that I have been building relationships with these students all semester. For the sake of this example assignment, the use of AI was allowable as a brainstorming tool and to help with writing a thesis statement if needed. These guidelines, including the expectation that AI tools and other resources be cited, were communicated with the rest of the parameters when introducing the assignment. Although this is not my first conversation about writing with these students, it is the first one about the AI writing indicator and score, and so I want to prepare for the conversation so that all participants leave the conversation satisfied with the outcome.

Let’s take a look at some of my students: Student A, Student B, and Student C. Each has unique characteristics that factored into the decision to have a deeper conversation. My expectation was that there would be some variance in scores, but that they would also fall along certain expected levels. This was true for most students, but not these three, who received notably higher AI writing scores on the assignment.

In the table below, three student profiles are coupled with the specific concern that gives greater context to their AI writing score. The potential solution column outlines my thought-process as an educator or decision-maker, offering potential next steps with that student’s profile and particular concern in mind.

As highlighted above in the “Potential solution” column, a conversation is needed with all three students in order for clarification and perhaps to suggest some adjustments. While I would not expect that all students will have the exact same score or even fall within a range of scores, the main point of these conversations is to focus on writing and to ensure that the students are supported when using generative AI writing tools so that their writing showcases their own original thinking.

How can educators use the AI writing indicator to facilitate good writing instruction?

Acknowledging that the tools are there and sharing when/why/how generative AI writing tools can be used as an aid (never a substitute!) is important to students’ writing journeys. It seems obvious that AI writing tools are here to stay. Regardless of whether this innovation is positive or negative in everyone’s mind, it seems likely that generative AI will be used by students post-secondary-school, whether they go to university or into trade or some other aspect of the workforce.

Students use AI writing tools for a variety of reasons, but when the discussion is focused on solutions rather than misuse, then the opportunity for learning is centered. The idea of intentional misuse or not becomes less important than learning how to “fix” it. Helping students manage time more efficiently vs copying and pasting an entire essay; teaching in-text citations vs just inserting another writer’s or bot’s words; teaching paraphrasing vs … there are as many reasons students use generative AI writing tools as there are students and–just as importantly–solutions that maintain the student’s academic integrity.

When the AI writing score is used to inform conversations about student writing in the formative space, then these conversations become part of the process and support that students often need to improve their writing . The score is a good starting point for discussing how to use these tools while still maintaining the integrity of their work. Talking to students about their process and figuring out together how to respond to the challenges presented by writing when generative AI seems easier is important to helping students improve their writing.

In sum: Interpreting Turnitin’s AI writing score

Turnitin’s AI writing indicator provides a percentage and a report with highlighted text that indicates the text was likely generated using AI writing tools… and that’s really it. What it is not is a magic button that provides definitive answers in isolation. More important than any tool is the educator who sees the score and makes decisions balancing this information with their personal knowledge of their students, their work, and institutional policy.

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Writing a Paper: Comparing & Contrasting

A compare and contrast paper discusses the similarities and differences between two or more topics. The paper should contain an introduction with a thesis statement, a body where the comparisons and contrasts are discussed, and a conclusion.

Address Both Similarities and Differences

Because this is a compare and contrast paper, both the similarities and differences should be discussed. This will require analysis on your part, as some topics will appear to be quite similar, and you will have to work to find the differing elements.

Make Sure You Have a Clear Thesis Statement

Just like any other essay, a compare and contrast essay needs a thesis statement. The thesis statement should not only tell your reader what you will do, but it should also address the purpose and importance of comparing and contrasting the material.

Use Clear Transitions

Transitions are important in compare and contrast essays, where you will be moving frequently between different topics or perspectives.

• Examples of transitions and phrases for comparisons: as well, similar to, consistent with, likewise, too
• Examples of transitions and phrases for contrasts: on the other hand, however, although, differs, conversely, rather than.

For more information, check out our transitions page.

Structure Your Paper

Consider how you will present the information. You could present all of the similarities first and then present all of the differences. Or you could go point by point and show the similarity and difference of one point, then the similarity and difference for another point, and so on.

Include Analysis

It is tempting to just provide summary for this type of paper, but analysis will show the importance of the comparisons and contrasts. For instance, if you are comparing two articles on the topic of the nursing shortage, help us understand what this will achieve. Did you find consensus between the articles that will support a certain action step for people in the field? Did you find discrepancies between the two that point to the need for further investigation?

Make Analogous Comparisons

When drawing comparisons or making contrasts, be sure you are dealing with similar aspects of each item. To use an old cliché, are you comparing apples to apples?

• Example of poor comparisons: Kubista studied the effects of a later start time on high school students, but Cook used a mixed methods approach. (This example does not compare similar items. It is not a clear contrast because the sentence does not discuss the same element of the articles. It is like comparing apples to oranges.)
• Example of analogous comparisons: Cook used a mixed methods approach, whereas Kubista used only quantitative methods. (Here, methods are clearly being compared, allowing the reader to understand the distinction.

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Judge dismisses antisemitism lawsuit against MIT, allows one against Harvard to move ahead

FILE - Graduating students hold Palestinian flags and chant as they walk out in protest over the 13 students who have been barred from graduating due to protest activities, during commencement in Harvard Yard, at Harvard University, in Cambridge, Mass., Thursday, May 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

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BOSTON (AP) — A federal lawsuit accusing Massachusetts Institute of Technology of tolerating antisemitism after the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel has been dismissed while a similar one against Harvard University can continue.

The MIT lawsuit accused the university of approving antisemitic activities on campus and tolerating discrimination and harassment against Jewish students and faculty. In dismissing the lawsuit July 30, U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns noted that MIT took steps to address on-campus protests that posed a potential threat to Jewish students.

“Plaintiffs frame MIT’s response to the conflict largely as one of inaction. But the facts alleged tell a different story,” Stearns wrote. “Far from sitting on its hands, MIT took steps to contain the escalating on-campus protests that, in some instances, posed a genuine threat to the welfare and safety of Jewish and Israeli students, who were at times personally victimized by the hostile demonstrators.”

The judge drew a sharply different conclusion about Harvard, moving toward a trial on the university’s claim that it had done its best to balance its responsibilities of protecting free speech and preventing discrimination among its students.

Ruling on Aug. 6 that parts of that lawsuit can move forward, Stearns wrote that Harvard’s response to antisemitic incidents “was, at best, indecisive, vacillating, and at times internally contradictory.”

Fallout from the Israel-Hamas war roiled campuses across the United States during the last school year and reignited a debate over free speech.

College leaders have struggled to define the line where political speech crosses into harassment and discrimination, and both Arab and Jewish students have raised concerns that schools are doing too little to protect them. Some have complained that universities have gone too far in cracking down on pro-Palestinian protesters by arresting and suspending students , while others said they’ve been too tolerant of encampments that sprung up on campuses.

MIT said Thursday that the ruling in its case speaks for itself.

“We appreciate that the Court carefully assessed the allegations and dismissed plaintiffs’ claims,” MIT said in a statement. “Our leaders have and will continue to support our students and focus on making it possible for all of us to share the campus successfully while pursuing MIT’s vital mission.”

The StandWithUs Center for Legal Justice filed the lawsuit against MIT along with two students. Its director, Carly Gammill, expressed her disappointment on Thursday, saying they had sought to “hold MIT accountable for failing to protect Jewish and Zionist students from antisemitic hate on its campus.”

“We are immensely grateful to the courageous students and attorneys who made this case possible,” Gammill said. “The SCLJ will continue its efforts to hold bad actors responsible — whether for perpetuating or showing deliberate indifference to antisemitism — on behalf of students at MIT and campuses across the country.”

Students Against Antisemitism, Inc., accuses Harvard of violating Jewish students’ civil rights by tolerating them being harassed, assaulted and intimidated — behavior that has intensified since the Oct. 7 attack.

The judge Stearns dismissed the plaintiffs’ allegations that they were directly discriminated against by Harvard University. He said former president Claudine Gay and interim president Alan Garber repeatedly recognized “an eruption of antisemitism on the Harvard campus.”

But Stearns said there were many instances where the university “didn’t respond at all” and ”failed its Jewish students.”

“We are gratified that the Court has upheld our clients’ civil rights claims against Harvard,” Marc Kasowitz, a partner at the law firm that brought the suit, said in a statement. “We intend to continue to take all necessary and appropriate steps to protect Harvard’s Jewish students, the first step being discovery of Harvard’s internal files and communications to prove the full nature and extent of Harvard’s failures.”

In a statement, Harvard said it “will continue to take concrete steps to address the root causes of antisemitism on campus and protect our Jewish and Israeli students, ensuring they may pursue their education free from harassment and discrimination.

“We appreciate that the Court dismissed the claim that Harvard directly discriminated against members of our community, and we understand that the court considers it too early to make determinations on other claims,” the statement continued. “Harvard is confident that once the facts in this case are made clear, it will be evident that Harvard has acted fairly and with deep concern for supporting our Jewish and Israeli students.”